Tom Carroll Surfboard by Dave Parmenter / Aleutian Juice

Greetings, Shredderz! Here’s a doozy of a board that is currently for sale on Craigslist in Cambria, located on California’s Central Coast. It’s a Tom Carroll surfboard that was shaped for the two-time world champ, but with some interesting additional backstory. The board pictured below was shaped by none other than Dave Parmenter, the iconoclastic and brilliant mind behind Aleutian Juice. Pictures are taken from the Craigslist listing; note that the Shred Sledz text in the first pic is NOT intended as a watermark, but to hide the face of the gentleman in question.

Parmenter is one of the most fascinating figures in surfing. He’s one of the few shapers who uses Instagram to share the books currently on his reading list in lieu of lineup shots and hashtags. I would guess even fewer still regularly write great articles, much less for the Surfer’s Journal. Parmenter first entered the surfing consciousness in the 1980s, when he was one of California’s most promising pros. In an industry with a borderline unhealthy obsession with youth, Parmenter has defied convention, leaving behind the pro tour for a career as one of the world’s most thoughtful and outspoken shapers.

A post shared by Dave Parmenter (@aleutianjuice) on May 25, 2013 at 9:41pm PDT

Parmenter and Carroll were contemporaries on the pro surfing circuit during the 1980s. Later in the decade, while working as a shaping apprentice for Rusty Preisendorfer, Parmenter began shaping boards for Carroll. Their relationship has continued to this day. Carroll even gets a shout out on the Aleutian Juice team riders page.

Tom Carroll posing with an Aleutian Juice stick. As you can see from the Clark Foam laminate, this is an older board Parmenter shaped for Carroll. Parmenter dates this board to the early 1990s, though the picture above was taken much later. Pic via Nowtro / Aleutian Juice

It is cool to think that Parmenter and Carroll, who were once at the center of the pro surfing hype machine during some of its frothiest years, are still connected today. It’s also worth noting that Parmenter apparently helped Carroll battle through the latter’s struggles with addiction — partially by introducing Carroll to stand-up paddleboarding — which adds a wonderful human element to their pairing.

As for the board that is currently listed for sale, it seems like it was shaped in the late 1990s / early 2000s. The seller claims it has been stored in a garage for the past 18 years. TC is known for his association with Quiksilver, and there’s a clear Quik logo found on the nose, but Parmenter’s signature dispels any sort of doubts around whether or not this is a legitimate Tom Carroll surfboard.

You can clearly see Parmenter’s signature, indicating this is a Tom Carroll surfboard. I can’t quite make out all the text on the stringer, sadly. Pic via Craigslist

Given that the board measures in at 10’4″ and it was shaped for Tom Carroll, there’s no doubt it was made for serious surf.

Tom Carroll at Off The Wall. Photo by Brian Bielmann. Bielmann says this wave “sent shockwaves through the surfing world” and was considered one of the biggest waves ever caught at OTW. Pic via Brian Bielmann

The seller is asking $2,500 for the board, which you can find here. It isn’t easy to find personal Tom Carroll boards, although I imagine this one was made for him well after TC’s pro career ended. I loved discovering the ongoing collaboration between Carroll and Parmenter, and the dynamic of a partnership between one of the most famous surfers of the 1980s, and a man who has made a point out of rejecting the pro surfing orthodoxy, respectively.